Mobile Device-Enhanced Rental Vehicle Returns

ABSTRACT

A number of techniques are disclosed for making it more convenient and efficient for customers to conduct various rental vehicle transactions. As an example, a technique for performing an automated pickup of a rental vehicle using a mobile device is disclosed. As another example, a technique for performing an automated return administration of a rental vehicle using a mobile device is disclosed. As another example, a technique for permitting customer to select a particular rental vehicle for a rental vehicle transaction using a mobile device is disclosed. Also disclosed is a technique for permitting a customer to keylessly start a rental vehicle using a machine-sensible item such as his/her mobile device without requiring the customer to possess a smart key.

CROSS-REFERENCE AND PRIORITY CLAIM TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser.No. 14/212,339, filed Mar. 14, 2014, entitled “Mobile Device-EnhancedRental Vehicle Returns”, which (1) claims priority to U.S. provisionalpatent application Ser. No. 61/784,227, filed Mar. 14, 2013, entitled“Mobile Device-Enhanced Rental Vehicle Transactions”, and (2) is adivisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/840,711, filed Mar.15, 2013, entitled “Mobile Device-Enhanced User Selection of SpecificRental Vehicles for a Rental Vehicle Reservation”, now U.S. Pat. No.9,499,128, which also claims priority to U.S. provisional patentapplication Ser. No. 61/784,227, filed Mar. 14, 2013, entitled “MobileDevice-Enhanced Rental Vehicle Transactions”, the entire disclosures ofeach of which are incorporated herein by reference.

This patent application is also related to (1) U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 14/212,109, filed this same day, entitled “Method and Apparatusfor Driver's License Analysis to Support Rental Vehicle Transactions”,now U.S. Pat. No. 10,059,304, (2) U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/212,220, filed this same day, entitled “Mobile Device-EnhancedPickups for Rental Vehicle Transactions”, and (3) U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/212,455, filed this same day, entitled “SmartKey Emulation for Vehicles”, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,701,281.

INTRODUCTION

The inventors believe that room for improvement exists with respect tohow portable computing devices (hereinafter “mobile devices”) areleveraged to support rental vehicle transactions. Toward this end, theinventors disclose various embodiments whereby a wide variety of rentalvehicle transactions can be supported by mobile devices in a manner moreconvenient and efficient to customers.

For example, the inventors disclose an apparatus comprising a mobiledevice, the mobile device configured to execute a mobile application,the mobile application configured to interact with the mobile device anda remote computer system to perform an automated return administrationof a rental vehicle in response to user input.

In accordance with another exemplary aspect, the inventors disclose amethod for performing an automated return administration of a rentalvehicle, the method comprising (1) receiving input from a mobile deviceof a driver for the rental vehicle that is indicative of a request toschedule a return for the rental vehicle, (2) in response to thereceived input, communicating information from a reservation record forthe rental vehicle to the driver's mobile device to populate apre-return graphical user interface (GUI) for display on the driver'smobile device, the GUI being configured to solicit return informationfrom the driver, (3) receiving the solicited return information from thedriver's mobile device through the GUI, and (4) storing the receivedreturn information in memory in association with the reservation record;and wherein the method steps are performed by a processor.

Further still, the inventors disclose an apparatus for performing anautomated return administration of a rental vehicle, the apparatuscomprising a processor and a memory, the memory configured to store areservation record for the rental vehicle, and wherein the processor isconfigured to (1) receive input from a mobile device of a driver for therental vehicle that is indicative of a request to schedule a return forthe rental vehicle, (2) in response to the received input, communicateinformation from the reservation record for the rental vehicle to thedriver's mobile device to populate a pre-return graphical user interface(GUI) for display on the driver's mobile device, the GUI beingconfigured to solicit return information from the driver, (3) receivethe solicited return information from the driver's mobile device throughthe GUI, and (4) store the received return information in the memory inassociation with the reservation record.

In accordance with yet another exemplary aspect, the inventors disclosea method for performing an automated return administration of a rentalvehicle, the method comprising (1) receiving input from a user via amobile device, the received input indicative of a request to return arental vehicle, the rental vehicle corresponding to a rental vehicletransaction, (2) in response to the received input, initiating anautomated retrieval of rental vehicle information via a vehicletelematics unit deployed in the rental vehicle, the rental vehicleinformation comprising a current fuel level for the rental vehicle, (3)providing a graphical user interface (GUI) for display to the user viathe mobile device, the GUI configured to display fuel level datarelating to the current fuel level retrieved via the vehicle telematicsunit, and (4) initiating a closing of the rental vehicle transactionafter the GUI has been provided for display to the user via the mobiledevice, and wherein the method steps are performed by a processorresident in the mobile device.

Further still, the inventors disclose a computer program productcomprising a plurality of instructions executable by a processor of amobile device and resident on a non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium, wherein the instructions, upon execution by the mobile device'sprocessor, are configured to cause the mobile device to (1) processinput from a user, the input being indicative of a request to return arental vehicle, the rental vehicle corresponding to a rental vehicletransaction, (2) in response to the processed input, initiate anautomated retrieval of rental vehicle information via a vehicletelematics unit deployed in the rental vehicle, the rental vehicleinformation comprising a current fuel level for the rental vehicle, (3)present a graphical user interface (GUI) to the user, the GUI configuredto display fuel level data relating to the current fuel level retrievedvia the vehicle telematics unit, and (4) initiate a closing of therental vehicle transaction after the GUI has been presented to the user.

In accordance with still another exemplary aspect, the inventorsdisclose a computer program product comprising a plurality ofinstructions executable by a processor of a mobile device and residenton a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, wherein theinstructions, upon execution by the mobile device's processor, areconfigured to cause the mobile device to (1) determine whether acustomer is currently using a self-rent rental vehicle, (2) in responseto a determination that the customer is currently using a self-rentrental vehicle, present a graphical user interface (GUI) to thecustomer, the GUI configured display a user-selectable option to beginan end reservation process for the self-rent rental vehicle, (3) processinput from the customer that is indicative of a selection by thecustomer of the option to begin the end reservation process, and (4)responsive to the input, present the customer with a plurality of returnlocation options for the self-rental vehicle.

The inventors also disclose how rental vehicles can be configured tosupport automated self-rental without a need to distribute any keys torenters. With such embodiments, machine-sensible items such as mobiledevices can be used to effectively replace the role of keys for rentalvehicles, including not only door lock/unlock function but also vehicleignition function.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary system for an embodiment that employs mobiledevices to streamline how rental vehicle transactions are conducted.

FIG. 2(a) depicts an exemplary embodiment for a mobile device.

FIG. 2(b) depicts an exemplary architecture for a mobile applicationexecuted by a mobile device.

FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary embodiment for a rental computer system.

FIG. 4(a) depicts an exemplary process flow for creating or activating arental vehicle transaction via a mobile device.

FIG. 4(b) depicts an exemplary process flow for opening a rentalcontract for a rental vehicle transaction via a mobile device.

FIG. 4(c) depicts an exemplary process flow for ending a rental vehicletransaction via a mobile device.

FIG. 5 depicts an exemplary system for creating and managing replacementrental vehicle reservations.

FIG. 6 depicts an exemplary system for a rental computer system tocommunicate with a self-rent rental vehicle.

FIG. 7(a) depicts an exemplary process flow for assessing the validityof a driver's license via communications with a mobile device.

FIG. 7(b) depicts an exemplary data structure for a customer record tosupport mobility-based rental vehicle transactions.

FIG. 8(a) depicts an exemplary process flow for creating a rentalvehicle reservation for a self-rent rental vehicle via a mobile device.

FIG. 8(b) depicts an exemplary data structure for a reservation recordto support mobility-based rental vehicle transactions.

FIG. 9 depicts an exemplary system deployed in a rental vehicle tosupport self-rental capabilities.

FIG. 10 depicts an exemplary process flow for execution by the rentalvehicle system of FIG. 9 to support self-rental capabilities.

FIGS. 11 and 12 depict exemplary process flows for execution by a mobiledevice and a rental computer system respectively to supportmobility-based pickups of self-rental rental vehicles without requiringthe customer to have his or her driver's license pre-approved.

FIG. 13 depicts an exemplary process flow for a mobile device to supportreplacement rental vehicle reservations.

FIG. 14 depicts an exemplary process flow for a rental computer systemto support replacement rental vehicle reservations.

FIGS. 15(a)-23 depict exemplary graphical user interface (GUI) screensfor display on a mobile device to support activation of a replacementrental vehicle reservation.

FIG. 24 depicts an exemplary process flow for a mobile device to supportaccessing a rental vehicle in accordance with an activated replacementrental vehicle reservation.

FIGS. 25-27 depict exemplary GUI screens for display on a mobile deviceto support accessing a rental vehicle in accordance with an activatedreplacement rental vehicle reservation.

FIG. 28 depicts an exemplary process flow for a rental computer systemto support a return scheduling by a customer for a replacement rentalvehicle reservation via a mobile device.

FIGS. 29-34 depict exemplary GUI screens for display on a mobile deviceto support return scheduling by a customer for a replacement rentalvehicle reservation.

FIG. 35 depicts an exemplary process flow for a mobile device to supportreturning a rental vehicle for a replacement rental vehicle reservation.

FIGS. 36 and 37 depict exemplary GUI screens for display on a mobiledevice to support a return by a customer of a rental vehicle for areplacement rental vehicle reservation.

FIGS. 38(a) and (b) depict exemplary process flows and GUI screens fordisplay on a mobile device to support rental vehicle transactions forself-rent rental vehicles through an exemplary self-rent rental program.

FIGS. 39(a)-(d) depict exemplary process flows and GUI screens fordisplay on a mobile device to support mobile application download andenrollment in a self-rent rental program via mobile device.

FIGS. 39(e) and (f) depict exemplary process flows for execution by amobile device and a rental computer system respectively to supportenrollment in a self-rent rental program via a mobile device.

FIGS. 40(a)-(d) depict exemplary process flows and GUI screens fordisplay on a mobile device to support creating rental vehiclereservations through a self-rent rental program via mobile device.

FIGS. 41(a)-(c) depict exemplary process flows and GUI screens fordisplay on a mobile device to support picking up and returning rentalvehicles in accordance with rental vehicle reservations through aself-rent rental program via mobile device.

FIG. 42 depicts an exemplary process flow for execution by a rentalcomputer system to support selection by a customer of specific rentalvehicles for pickup in accordance with a rental vehicle reservation fromamong a plurality of rental vehicle options via mobile device.

FIGS. 43-49(b) depict exemplary GUI screens for display on a mobiledevice to support selecting a specific rental vehicle for pickup inaccordance with a rental vehicle reservation.

FIG. 50 depicts an exemplary process flow for another embodiment thatsupports selection by a customer of a specific rental vehicle for pickupfrom among a plurality of rental vehicle options in accordance with arental vehicle reservation.

FIGS. 51(a) and (b) depict additional exemplary process flows for yetanother embodiment that supports selection by a customer of a specificrental vehicle for pickup from among a plurality of rental vehicleoptions in accordance with a rental vehicle reservation.

FIGS. 52-55 depict exemplary embodiments for a system that permits acustomer to use a machine-sensible item such as a mobile device as asmart key for starting a rental vehicle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary system 100 for an embodiment that employsmobile devices to streamline how rental vehicle transactions areconducted. The system 100 may comprise at least one and preferably aplurality of mobile devices 102 in communication with a rental computersystem 106 via a data communications network 104. The system 100 mayfurther comprise at least one and preferably a plurality of rentalvehicles 108, where these rental vehicles 108 are also configured tocommunicate with the network 104. Thus, the rental computer system 106can be configured to communicate with the rental vehicles 108 via thenetwork 104. Also, if desired by a practitioner, the mobile devices 102can also be configured to communicate with the rental vehicles 108 viathe network 104.

The mobile device 102 can be a smart phone (e.g., an iPhone, a GoogleAndroid device, a Blackberry device, etc.), tablet computer (e.g., aniPad), or the like. Furthermore, the mobile device 102 can be a positiontracking-enabled mobile device. That is, the mobile device 102 can beconfigured to track its geographic position and communicate dataregarding same to other computing devices (e.g., to rental computersystem 106). The mobile device preferably employs a touchscreen or thelike for interacting with a user. However, it should be understood thatany of a variety of data display techniques and data input techniquescould be employed by the mobile device. For example, to receive inputsfrom a user, the mobile device need not necessarily employ atouchscreen—it could also or alternatively employ a keyboard or othermechanisms.

FIG. 2(a) depicts an exemplary embodiment for a mobile device 102. Themobile device 102 may comprise a processor 200 and associated memory202, where the processor 200 and memory 202 are configured to cooperateto execute software and/or firmware that supports operation of themobile device 102. Furthermore, the mobile device 102 may include an I/Odevice 204 (e.g., a touchscreen user interface for graphicallydisplaying output data and receiving input data from a user), a camera206, wireless I/O 208 for sending and receiving data, a microphone 210for sensing sound and converting the sensed sound into an electricalsignal for processing by the mobile device 102, and a speaker 212 forconverting sound data into audible sound. The wireless I/O 208 mayinclude capabilities for making and taking telephone calls,communicating with nearby objects via near field communication (NFC),communicating with nearby objects via RF, and/or communicating withnearby objects via BlueTooth. These components are now resident in manystandard models of smart phones and other mobile devices.

FIG. 2(b) depicts an exemplary mobile application 250 for an exemplaryembodiment. Mobile application 250 can be installed on the mobile device102 for execution by processor 200. The mobile application 250preferably comprises a plurality of computer-executable instructionsresident on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium such as acomputer memory. The instructions may include instructions defining aplurality of GUI screens for presentation to the user through the I/Odevice 204. The instructions may also include instructions definingvarious I/O programs 256 such as:

-   -   a GUI data out interface 258 for interfacing with the I/O device        204 to present one or more GUI screens 252 to the user;    -   a GUI data in interface 260 for interfacing with the I/O device        204 to receive user input data therefrom;    -   a scanner interface 262 for interfacing with a scanner that is        either built-in or attached to the mobile device to communicate        instructions to the scanner for capturing scanned data and to        receive scanned data corresponding to a scanned item from the        scanner (examples of scanners that may be employed include a        credit card scanner, a driver's license scanner, a bar code        scanner, and/or a QR code scanner);    -   a camera interface 264 for interfacing with the camera 206 to        communicate instructions to the camera 206 for capturing an        image in response to user input and to receive image data        corresponding to a captured image from the camera 206;    -   a wireless data out interface 266 for interfacing with the        wireless I/O 208 to provide the wireless I/O with data for        communication over the network 104; and    -   a wireless data in interface 268 for interfacing with the        wireless I/O 208 to receive data communicated over the network        104 to the portable computing device for processing by the        mobile application 250.

The instructions may further include instructions defining a controlprogram 254. The control program can be configured to provide theprimary intelligence for the mobile application 250, includingorchestrating the data outgoing to and incoming from the I/O programs256 (e.g., determining which GUI screens 252 are to be presented to theuser).

The network 104 can be any data communications network capable ofsupporting communications between the rental computer system 106 andmobile devices 102 as well as communications between the rental computersystem 106 and rental vehicles 108, wherein at least a portion of thedata communication is wireless data communication as shown in FIG. 1. Itshould be understood that network 104 may comprise multiple datacommunication networks that interconnect to form a larger network. Thenetwork 104 may be public, private, or a mix of public and privatenetworks.

The rental computer system 106 can be a server or collection of serversthat are configured to support rental vehicle transaction processing asdescribed herein. The rental computer system 106 can be operated by arental vehicle service provider such as a rental car company. However,it should be understood that other entities may operate the system. FIG.3 depicts an exemplary embodiment of the rental computer system 106. Thesystem 106 may comprise a processor 300 and associated memory 302, wherethe processor 300 and memory 302 are configured to cooperate to executesoftware that performs transaction processing as described herein. Amemory in the form of database 308 may be configured to store variousdata structures representative of rental vehicle reservations and thecustomers for same. The system 106 may further comprise one or more I/Ointerfaces (e.g., I/O interfaces 304 and 306 for communicating viawireless RF and Internet links, respectively). It should be understoodthat FIG. 3 is exemplary only, and a practitioner may distribute theprocessing tasks described herein among numerous processors as well asdistribute the data storage tasks described herein among numerousdatabases. Examples of rental car computer systems that can be employedfor this purpose are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,275,038, 7,899,690,8,108,231, 8,160,906, 8,160,907, 8,234,134, 8,340,989, and 8,374,894,U.S. Pat. App. Pubs. 2003/0125992, 2004/0039612, 2005/0091087,2007/0174081, 2007/0198311, 2007/0239494, 2007/0260496, 2007/0271124,2007/0271125, 2007/0294116, 2008/0097798, 2008/0162199, 2008/0243562,2008/0243563, 2008/0249814, 2009/0030747, 2010/0023352, 2010/0106608,and 2010/0106623, and published PCT patent application WO 02/057873, theentire disclosures of each of which are incorporated herein byreference.

FIGS. 4(a)-(c) describe exemplary process flows that can be executed bythe processor 300 of the rental computer system to support variousrental vehicle transactions.

FIG. 4(a) depicts an exemplary process flow for execution by the rentalcomputer system to create or activate a rental vehicle transaction viacommunications over network 104 with a mobile device 102. Step 400 mayinvolve communicating data to the mobile device 102 via network 104 topopulate various GUI screens on the mobile device 102 with informationsuch as rental vehicle reservation options. The step 400 may alsoinvolve the rental computer system 106 receiving customer informationfor a reservation transaction from the mobile device 102. At step 402,the rental computer system 106 can store data representative of therental vehicle transaction in database 308.

FIG. 4(b) depicts an exemplary process flow for execution by the rentalcomputer system to open a rental contract for a rental vehicletransaction. As is well understood, rental vehicle service providerstypically require that customers become a party to a rental contractwith the rental vehicle service provider in order for the customer topick up a rental vehicle in accordance with a reservation. Simply havinga rental vehicle reservation does not entitle the customer to pick up arental vehicle. At step 410, the rental computer system communicatesdata to the mobile device 102 via network 104 to populate various GUIscreens on the mobile device 102, where these screens are configured tosolicit input from the customer for creating a rental contract from areservation. Examples of GUI screens and process flows that can be usedby step 410 for such rental contract creation are described in U.S. Pat.App. Pubs. 2007/0198311, 2010/0106608, and 2010/0106623 and publishedPCT patent application WO 02/057873, the entire disclosures of each ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference. Once a rental contract is inplace, the rental computer system 106 can also interact with the mobiledevice 102 to open the rental contract. As used herein, a rentalcontract is said to be open during the time from when the customer hasactually picked up the rental vehicle to the time when the customer hasreturned control of the rental vehicle to the rental vehicle to therental vehicle service provider. At step 412, the rental computer system106 can store data representative of the opened rental contract indatabase 308.

FIG. 4(c) depicts an exemplary process flow for execution by the rentalcomputer system to administer the return of a rental vehicle and end thecorresponding rental vehicle transaction. When it comes time for acustomer to end his or her rental of a rental vehicle, the rentalcomputer system 106 can communicate at step 420 with the mobile device102 via network 104 to populate various GUI screens on the mobile device102, where these screens are configured to solicit input from thecustomer for scheduling a return of the rental vehicle. In response toinputs from the mobile device 102, the rental computer system 106 canstore data representative of the return information and transactioncompletion in database 308.

Additional aspects of the process flows of FIGS. 4(a)-(c) are describedbelow with reference to exemplary embodiments.

It should be understood that the rental vehicle transactions supportedby FIGS. 4(a)-(c) and other embodiments described herein can include notonly conventional retail rental vehicle reservations (includingincremental rental vehicle reservations) but also replacement rentalvehicle reservations. Drivers whose regular vehicles are disabled as aresult of accidents or otherwise will often need to engage a rentalvehicle while their regular vehicles are being repaired. As the term isused herein, a vehicle may become disabled by either the driver havinghad an accident, thereby causing damage for a repair facility (e.g.,body shop, mechanic, etc.) to fix, or simply through mechanical failure,maintenance, or other similar desires or needs for changes requiring thecustody of the vehicle to be relinquished to a repair facility. In manyinstances, an insurance company, automobile dealer, or fleet companywill provide a rental vehicle to such drivers as part of the servicesprovided through automobile insurance policies, dealer service policies,or fleet service policies. Such rental vehicles are referred to hereinas “replacement rental vehicles” or “replacement vehicles”. Replacementrental vehicles represent an important source of business for rentalvehicle service providers given the large volumes of drivers whoseregular vehicles become disabled as a result of accidents, mechanicalbreakdowns, and other causes.

In this business chain, there are four primary parties—the first is thedriver (or customer) whose vehicle becomes disabled (thereby creating aneed for a replacement rental vehicle), the second is the purchaser ofrental vehicle services who books a rental vehicle reservation on behalfof the driver (typically an insurance company, automobile dealer, etc.),the third is the rental vehicle service provider with which thepurchaser books the rental vehicle reservation, and the fourth is therepair facility where the driver's disabled vehicle is repaired.

In a typical replacement rental scenario, a driver whose regular vehiclehas become disabled (e.g., the driver has had an accident) notifies thepurchaser (e.g., the driver's insurance company) of his/her need for areplacement rental vehicle. The purchaser then books a reservation for areplacement rental vehicle with a rental vehicle service provider.Oftentimes, this reservation is consummated when the driver dropshis/her disabled vehicle off at the repair facility. An employee of therental vehicle service provider who has been notified of the bookedreservation will meet the driver at the repair facility to provide thedriver with the replacement rental vehicle. At this time, the rentalvehicle service provider employee will fill out rental contractpaperwork with the driver for the replacement rental vehicle, and if theterms are agreeable to the driver, the driver signs the rental contractpaperwork to form a rental contract with the rental vehicle serviceprovider.

Another common scenario is that an employee of the rental vehicleservice provider will pick the driver up from the repair facility totake the driver to a nearby rental vehicle branch location. From therental vehicle branch location, the driver and rental vehicle serviceprovider employee can then fill out the rental contract paperwork toform the rental contract. In either event, once the rental contractpaperwork has been filled out and signed, the driver is enabled to pickup his/her replacement rental vehicle.

The inventors have sought to improve the efficiency of this processthrough intelligent leveraging of mobile devices as described herein(see, for example, the embodiments described in connection with FIGS.13-37). FIG. 5 depicts an exemplary system through which replacementrentals can be managed. That rental computer system 106 can include anautomated reservation management computer system 504, where theautomated reservation management computer system 504 comprisesreservation management software 506 and a database, which forms at leasta portion of database 308, in which replacement rental vehiclereservation transactions are stored. A purchaser computer system 500 canaccess the reservation management software 506 via a network 104 (whichmay include the Internet (see bidirectional communication path 516)).Through the reservation management software 506, a user of the purchasercomputer system 500 can create and manage a plurality of replacementrental vehicle reservations on behalf of drivers/customers whoseordinary vehicles are undergoing repair at a repair facility. Themanagement functionality provided by the system 500 can be employed totake management actions on rental vehicle reservations throughout alloperational activity phases of rental vehicle reservations, including areservation phase (starting from the time of reservation creation untila rental contract is opened), an open rental contract phase (startingfrom rental contract opening until rental vehicle return to close therental contract), and a closed rental contract phase (for after therental vehicle has been returned by the driver). A repair facilitycomputer system 502 can also be in communication with the automatedreservation management computer system 504 via the network 104 (see thebidirectional communication path 518). The repair facility computersystem 502 can be configured to communicate vehicle repair data to theautomated reservation management computer system 504 for use in themanagement of replacement rental vehicle reservation transactions.Furthermore, as described herein, the repair facility computer system504 can be configured to access the reservation management software 506to manage the pick up process for replacement rental vehiclescorresponding to replacement rental vehicle reservation transactions. Anexample of a suitable automated reservation management computer system504 is the pioneering replacement rental vehicle reservation managementsystem known as the ARMS® system operated by Enterprise, which isdescribed in various patents and published patent applications such as:U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,275,038, 7,899,690, 8,160,906, 8,160,907, 8,340,989,and 8,374,894, and U.S. Pat. App. Pubs. 2007/0260496, 2007/0271125,2007/0271124, 2008/0243562, 2008/0243563, 2008/0249814, 2003/0125992,2005/0021378, 2005/0091087, 2008/0162199, 2008/0097798, 2007/0174081,2008/0140460, 2010/0023352, and 2009/0030747, the entire disclosures ofeach of which being incorporated herein by reference.

It should further be understood that the rental vehicles underlying therental vehicle transactions supported by FIGS. 4(a)-(c) and otherembodiments described herein can include not only conventional rentalvehicles (e.g., the standard vehicles for which personnel of a rentalvehicle service provider provide keys to customers at the time ofpickup), but also self-rent rental vehicles. This applies to both retailrental vehicle reservations and replacement rental vehicle reservations.In fact, the inventors believe that a significant synergy results fromthe combination of mobile device-enhanced rental vehicle transactionprocessing as described herein with self-rent rental vehicles becausethis combination is expected to provide dramatic improvements inefficiency and convenience for customers. A “self-rent” rental vehicleis rental vehicle configured with hardware and software that enablesauthorized customers to access and start the rental vehicle withoutdirectly interacting with other people (such as personnel of a rentalvehicle service provider), including during the rental vehicle pickupprocess. With a self-rent rental vehicle, the customer will have anaccess device that is configured to be recognized by hardware andsoftware installed in the self-rent rental vehicle to unlock andde-immobilize the self-rent rental vehicle. As described in embodimentsherein, an example of such an access device can be the customer's mobiledevice 102. However, in other embodiments, this access device can takethe form of equipment such as a fob having an embedded radio frequencyidentification (RFID) chip. A sensor installed in the self-rent rentalvehicle can detect the customer's mobile device (or a code stored by theRFID chip on a fob) and determine whether the customer is authorized toaccess the self-rent rental vehicle based on the sensed information.Examples of self-rent rental vehicles are those vehicles availablethrough the WECAR® rental service, wherein WECAR® is a registeredtrademark of Enterprise Holdings, Inc. of St. Louis, Mo. FIG. 6 depictsan exemplary system for a rental computer system 106 to communicate witha self-rent rental vehicle 108. The self-rent rental vehicle 108includes control hardware 600 that permits the customer to access therental vehicle using an access device such as his/her mobile device 102.Furthermore, the control hardware is configured to wirelessly receivedata (e.g., via a wireless RF antenna or the like) communicated to itfrom a transmitter 602 (e.g., a wireless communications transmitter suchas an RF antenna or the like). The rental computer system 106 can causethe transmitter 602 to broadcast authorization information 604 to thecontrol hardware 600 on the self-rent rental vehicle 108. The controlhardware 600 would then store this authorization information for usewhen determining whether a customer is entitled to access the vehicle.

1. Assessing Whether a Customer is a Licensed Driver

Rental vehicle service providers desire an ability to determine whetherthe customer who is to drive a rental vehicle is a licensed driver. Thatis, does the customer have a valid state driver's license? Withconventional rental vehicle transactions, this assessment is made at arental branch by personnel of a rental vehicle service provider. Thecustomer is asked for his/her driver's license, and the employee of therental vehicle service provider then makes an assessment as to whetherhe or she believes the license to be facially valid. However, it isdesired for rental vehicle transactions involving self-rent rentalvehicles to avoid any customer interaction with employees of a rentalvehicle service provider. This raises the question of how to satisfy thedesire for reviewing a customer's driver's license while permitting thecustomer to automate the rental vehicle pickup process. FIG. 7(a)depicts an exemplary process flow that provides a solution to thisproblem.

At step 700, the rental computer system receives a message from thecustomer's mobile device 102 that includes image data representative ofthe customer's driver's license. A user can employ the camera feature ofa mobile device 102 to generate such image data. The user can also loadan image of the driver's license onto the mobile device if desired.

At step 702, the rental computer system analyzes the driver's licenseimage data to assess the validity of the driver's license. Thisoperation may involve extracting text from the driver's license imagedata to obtain information such as the driver's name, address, and dateof birth, the state of issuance for the driver's license, a driver'slicense number, date of expiration, etc. This operation may also involveextracting the patterns that appear in the image data to determinewhether the extracted pattern conforms to the appearance of driver'slicenses for a state (or for the state extracted from the license textif applicable). Suitable software from third party vendors that useimage processing techniques to analyze the validity of driver's licensescan be used to perform step 702.

If the extracted data from the driver's license fails to pass theconditions governing validity, then at step 704, the rental computersystem rejects the customer and sends a notification of the rejection tothe customer's mobile device 102. If the extracted data from thedriver's license is deemed to pass the conditions governing validity,then at step 706, the rental computer system updates a customer recordfor the customer to reflect that the customer is licensed to drive amotor vehicle. FIG. 7(b) illustrates an exemplary customer record datastructure 720 for this purpose. The data structure 720 preferablyincludes data fields in association with each other such as a customeridentifier field 722 (which can be a unique string for identifying thecustomer in the rental computer system), a customer name field 724, amobile device identifier field 726 (which can be for example a telephonenumber for the mobile device 102 or a unique identifier for the mobiledevice other than a telephone number), a driver's license identifierfield 728 (which can be the extracted driver's license number), and alicense validity flag field 730. Based on the outcome of step 702, field730 can be set to indicate the customer as possessing a valid driver'slicense or not possessing a valid driver's license. The state of field730 can then govern whether the customer is permitted to pick up aself-rent rental vehicle. It should be well understood that customerrecord 720 may include additional or different fields.

While the steps of FIG. 7(a) are described as being performed by therental computer system, it should be understood that these steps orportions thereof could also be performed by some other third partycomputer system or by the mobile device 102 itself. In an example wherea third party computer system performs the method steps (or at leaststep 702), such third party computer system can then communicate theoutput of either steps 704 or 706 to the rental computer system so therental computer system can update its database. In an example where themobile device 102 performs the method steps (or at least step 702), amobile application resident on the mobile device can be configured toperform the steps with the output being communicated to the rentalcomputer system.

Also, it should be understood that the customer record 720 can alsoinclude a field that identifies the extracted expiration date for thecustomer's driver's license. Logic can then be applied to eitherautomatically change the validity flag field 730 when the current datefalls after the expiration date or perform an expiration date check toassess validity when the customer later attempts to book a reservationor pick up a rental vehicle.

2. Creating Rental Vehicle Reservations and Supporting Rental VehiclePickups

FIG. 8(a) depicts an exemplary process flow for creating a rentalvehicle reservation for a self-rent rental vehicle in a manner thatleverages automated driver's license assessments. At step 800, therental computer system receives a reservation request for the customerto rent a self-rent rental vehicle. This request can be received fromthe customer's mobile device, although that need not be the case (forexample, the customer may make the request through a desktop computervia a website). The reservation request may include information such asthe customer's name and address. If made via a mobile device, therequest may include information such as the customer's name and atelephone number for the mobile device.

At step 802, the rental computer system retrieves the customer record720 for the customer identified in the reservation request and checksthe license validity flag field 730 in the customer record 720. If thelicense validity flag field 730 of the customer record indicates thatthe customer has already proven he or she is a validly licensed driver,then the process flow continues to step 806. If the license validityflag field 730 of the customer record indicates that the customer hasnot proven he or she is a validly licensed driver, then the process flowcontinues to step 812. At step 812, the rental computer system promptsthe customer to provide an image of his/her driver's license to checkvalidity (for execution of the process flow in FIG. 7(a)). If thisexecution of the FIG. 7(a) process flow results in a determination thecustomer has a valid driver's license, then the process flow proceeds tostep 806. Otherwise, the rental computer system rejects the customer'sreservation request and sends a notification of same to the customer(step 814).

In the example of FIG. 8(a), step 806 is reached after the rentalcomputer system concludes that the customer has a valid driver'slicense. At step 806, the rental computer system proceeds to checkwhether a rental vehicle in accordance with the reservation request isavailable. It should be understood that step 806 may involve severalrounds of communication between the customer and the rental computersystem to obtain all necessary information for a reservation.

If step 806 results in a determination by the rental computer systemthat a rental vehicle is not available as per the reservation request,then at step 810, the rental computer system rejects the reservationrequest and notifies the customer re same.

If step 806 results in a determination by the rental computer systemthat a rental vehicle is available as per the reservation request, thenat step 808, the rental computer system creates a rental vehiclereservation for the customer and communicates authorization instructionsfor the reservation to the reserved rental vehicle to enable automatedpickup by the customer. FIG. 8(b) depicts an exemplary data structurefor a reservation record that can be created as a result of step 808.The data structure 820 preferably includes data fields in associationwith each other such as a reservation identifier field 822 (which can bea unique string for identifying the particular rental vehiclereservation transaction), a rental vehicle identifier field 824 (whichcan be a unique string for identifying the particular rental vehicle), acustomer identifier field 826 (which can be the unique string thatidentifies the customer for the reservation in the rental computersystem), a start date/time field 828 (which can identify the date andtime at which the rental vehicle becomes eligible for pickup by thecustomer), and an end date/time field 830 (which can identify thedate/time that the reservation is scheduled to end). It should beunderstood that reservation records 820 can be joined with correspondingcustomer records via the customer identifier fields 826/722. It shouldalso be well understood that reservation record 820 may includeadditional or different fields. The rental computer system cancommunicate the reservation record data structure 820 as well as thecorresponding customer record data structure 720 to the self-rent rentalvehicle for local storage in control hardware 600.

FIG. 9 depicts an exemplary system for control hardware 600 that can bedeployed in a rental vehicle 108 to support self-rental capabilities.The hardware system 600 may comprise a processor 900 and associatedmemory 902 that cooperate with each other to execute the operationsdescribed herein.

The wireless I/O component 904 can be configured to communicatewirelessly and bidirectionally with the rental computer system 106. Forexample, the processor 900 can receive the authorization informationfrom the rental computer system 106 via wireless I/O 904 and store thatauthorization information in memory 902.

The sensor 906 can be configured to sense the customer's mobile device102 via techniques such as NFC, RFID, BlueTooth, or the like. The sensor906 is preferably positioned in a location on the rental vehicle whichpermits the customer to conveniently position the mobile device 102nearby.

Vehicle interfaces 908 permit the hardware system 600 to communicatewith vehicle subsystems such as the vehicle's system forlocking/unlocking doors, the vehicle immobilizer to de-immobilize thevehicle, and/or the vehicle's ignition system to start the vehicle.

FIG. 10 depicts an exemplary process flow for execution by system 600 tosupport self-rental capabilities. At step 1000, the sensor 906 sensesthe customer's mobile device 102. The customer's mobile device 102 isconfigured to generate a signal sensible by sensor 906 where this signalcontains information for uniquely identifying the mobile device 102, thecustomer associated with the mobile device 102, or a reservation for thecustomer associated with the mobile device 102 (for example, the sameinformation that is present in fields 722 or 726 of the customer record720 or field 822 of the reservation record 820). As noted above, thissensible signal and sensor may employ communication techniques such asNFC, RFID, BlueTooth, or the like.

At step 1002, the processor checks the authorization record for therental vehicle in memory 902 to assess whether the customer associatedwith the mobile device 102 is authorized to pick up the rental vehicle.As indicated, the authorization record can comprise the combination ofreservation record 820 and the customer record 720 for the customerassociated with the reservation. Thus, the processor 900 can compare thesensed information with the mobile device identifier or customeridentifier in the authorization record. If there is match, the processor900 can conclude that the person bearing the mobile device 102 near therental vehicle is the same as the customer for the reservation. Theprocessor may also perform further authorization checks such ascomparing a current date/time with the start date/time field 828 of theauthorization record to assess whether the rental vehicle pickup by thecustomer is timely.

If the processor 900 determines that all of the authorization conditionsare met, then at step 1004, the system can provide the customer withaccess to the rental vehicle. At minimum, this may involve the processor900 instructing the vehicle to unlock the doors (via vehicle interface908). In some embodiments, an ignition device (e.g., key or the like)may be left inside the vehicle for use by the customer once the customergains access to the vehicle's interior (e.g., locating the ignitiondevice in the glove box or locked compartment accessible via a codeprovided to the customer). In other embodiments, the system 600 mayfurther instruct the vehicle to de-immobile the immobilizer and/or startthe vehicle as described hereinafter. Next, at step 1008, the processor900 logs the customer's vehicle access in memory 902.

If the processor 900 determines that not all of the authorizationconditions are met at step 1002, the system can then reject customeraccess to the vehicle at step 1006. This may involve leaving the vehicledoors locked and leaving the immobilizer in an immobilizing state.

FIGS. 11 and 12 depicts exemplary process flows for execution by amobile device and a rental computer system respectively to supportmobility-based pickups of self-rental rental vehicles without requiringthe customer to have his or her driver's license pre-approved. Thus, theprocess flows of FIGS. 11 and 12 can support “walk-up” rentals ofself-rent rental vehicles or rental vehicle pickups where the driver'slicense verification is performed at the time of pickup rather than atthe time of reservation booking.

FIG. 11 depicts an exemplary process flow for execution by a mobiledevice 102 via mobile application 250. At step 1100, the customer holdshis/her driver's license in front of the mobile device's camera 206 andoperates the mobile device to cause the camera to capture a photographof the driver's license. The user can open the mobile application 250where the mobile application 250 instructs the camera 206 to take thephotograph in response to user input, or the user can capture thephotograph outside the mobile application 250, but then use the mobileapplication to subsequently export the photograph to the rental computersystem 106.

At step 1102, a similar procedure can be followed to capture aphotograph of an identifier for the rental vehicle. For example, a barcode or QR code can be provided on the rental vehicle in a locationeasily photographed by the customer. The car identifier encoded by thebar code or QR code preferably matches the identifier used for therental vehicle in field 824 of the reservation records 820.

At step 1104, the processor then determines whether the two photographsare sufficiently close in time to be deemed a contemporaneous pair. Forexample, the customer can be required to take the two photographs within60 seconds (or some other time limit) of each other. If not sufficientlyclose in time, the process flow can return to start. Otherwise, theprocess flow proceeds to step 1106 where the mobile applicationinstructs the mobile device to communicate the photographs to the rentalcomputer system 106.

FIG. 12 depicts the complementary process flow for execution by therental computer system 106. At step 1200, the rental computer systemreceives the photographs of the driver's license and car identifier fromthe mobile device 102.

At step 1202, the rental computer system extracts relevant informationfrom the driver's license image data to enable validity checking aspreviously described in connection with step 702 of FIG. 7(a).

At step 1204, the rental computer system extracts the car identifierfrom the image data for the car identifier. This may involve processinga bar code or QR code image to convert such code to a character string.

At step 1206, the rental computer system analyzes the extracted driver'slicense data to assess validity (using techniques previously describedin connection with step 702 of FIG. 7(a)). If the rental computer systemconcludes that the driver's license is invalid, then at step 1214, therental computer system rejects the rental request by the customer andcommunicates this rejection to the customer's mobile device to notify resame. If the rental computer system concludes that the driver's licenseis valid, then the rental computer system proceeds to step 1208.

At step 1208, the rental computer system retrieves rental transactiondata for the customer and/or rental vehicle. The rental computer systemcan retrieve all reservation records 820 that are keyed to the rentalvehicle identified by the extracted car identifier (via field 824 of thereservation records).

In a true walk-up rental situation, there will not be a correspondingreservation record for the customer with respect to the rental vehicle.Thus, in the walk-up scenario, the rental computer system will check atstep 1210 for any retrieved rental vehicle reservation records 820 withrespect to the rental vehicle that are deemed to overlap with thedesired rental by the walk-up customer. If there is no deemed overlap,then at step 1212, the rental computer system will communicate rentalauthorization information to the rental vehicle identified by theextracted car identifier to permit access and pickup by the customer ifthe customer has otherwise agreed to all necessary terms and conditionsfor renting the rental vehicle. Thus, the customer would then be able toaccess the rental vehicle by placing his/her mobile device 102 nearsensor 908 to initiate the process flow of FIG. 10.

In a scenario where the customer had a pre-existing reservation, therental computer system will check at step 1210 for congruence betweenthe retrieved rental vehicle reservation and the information from thecustomer's mobile device. For example, the rental computer system cancheck for matches between:

-   -   The extracted name from the driver's license and the customer        name field 724 of the customer record 720 associated with the        retrieved reservation record 820, or a mobile device identifier        that accompanied the transmission received at step 1200 with the        mobile device identifier field 726 of the customer record 720        associated with the retrieved reservation record 820; and    -   The extracted car identifier and the rental vehicle identifier        field 824 of the retrieved reservation record 820.

The rental computer system at step 1210 can also check for a matchbetween the current time and the reservation start date/time field 828of the retrieved reservation record 820. The system can be configured todetermine that a time match has occurred if the current time is within aspecified tolerance of the time in the reservation start date/time field828. If the reservation is deemed supported by the extractedinformation, then the rental computer system can proceed to step 1212 asnoted above. Otherwise, the rental computer system can proceed to step1214 as noted above.

It should be understood that a wide number of variations on the processflows of FIGS. 11 and 12 can be practiced. For example, rather thanrequiring that two photographs be taken, the user can be prompted totake a single photograph that includes both the driver's license and thecar identifier. Toward this end, the car identifier can be provided on alocation of the rental vehicle that is tailored to support proximalplacement of the driver's license to permit easy photographing of thetwo. For example, a border shaped to accommodate expected sizes for adriver's license can be positioned next to the car identifier tofacilitate this action. This would eliminate any need for step 1104. Asanother example, rather than step 1102 involving capturing a photographof the car identifier, step 1102 can employ some other sensing techniqueto capture the car identifier. For example, RFID technology may beemployed by which an RFID tag is present on the rental vehicle touniquely identify the rental vehicle, and an RFID reader on the mobiledevice capture's the car identifier via RFID. In such an instance, thesensed RFID car identifier can then be communicated to the rentalcomputer system for processing. As yet another example, the timeproximity check of step 1102 can be performed by the rental computersystem rather than the mobile device. Still further, the time proximitycheck can be performed between a time for the car identifier capture andthe current time rather than between the driver's license capture andthe car identifier capture. As yet another example, as previously noted,the intelligence for analyzing driver's license validity can be deployedin the mobile application rather than the rental computer system 106 ifdesired by a practitioner.

Furthermore, while the preceding process flows and descriptions aretailored for embodiments with respect to the rental of self-rent rentalvehicles, it should be understood that similar techniques can be used tostreamline and improve the rent process for other types of rentalvehicles with a reduced role for personnel of a rental car company. Forexample, in some embodiments, a rental car company may choose to providean automated key box or other kiosk arrangement at a location whererental vehicles can be picked up, and similar techniques can be employedto determine whether to provide a customer with access to a key for arental vehicle from the automated key box or kiosk.

3. Exemplary Embodiment for Mobility-Enhanced Replacement Rental VehicleReservations

FIG. 13 depicts a process flow for an exemplary embodiment whereby amobile device is used to support replacement rental vehiclereservations. FIG. 13 categorizes the operations into two generalgroups—activating replacement rental vehicle reservations and returningrental vehicles for replacement rental vehicle reservations. Within theactivation group, FIG. 13 shows tasks for (1) notifications to driversabout the replacement rental vehicle reservations, (2) selection andverification of information by the drivers for the replacement rentalvehicle reservations, (3) driver's license scanning for the replacementrental vehicle reservations, (4) rental vehicle entry by the driver forthe replacement rental vehicle reservations, and (5) confirmationregarding same. Within the return group, FIG. 13 shows tasks for (1)notifications to drivers about the repair work being completed to thedriver's ordinary vehicle, (2) selection and verification of returninformation by the drivers for the replacement rental vehiclereservations, (3) rental vehicle return by the driver for thereplacement rental vehicle reservations, and (4) confirmation regardingcompletion of the replacement rental vehicle reservations.

3a. Activating the Replacement Rental Vehicle Reservation

FIG. 14 depicts an exemplary process flow for a rental computer systemto support activation aspects of replacement rental vehiclereservations. With such an embodiment, the driver will have a mobileapplication 250 resident on his/her mobile device 102 that is configuredto support the operations described herein. If no such mobileapplication 250 is resident on the mobile device 102, the driver can beprompted to download the appropriate mobile application 250 via themessage discussed below with respect to step 1402. At step 1400, areplacement rental vehicle reservation for a driver is created andstored in the database 308. This replacement rental vehicle reservationcan be created in response to input from a business partner of a rentalvehicle service provider (such as an insurance company). The businesspartner can use a system such as the automated reservation managementcomputer system 504 to create such replacement rental vehiclereservation.

At step 1402, a message is sent to the driver's mobile device 102 tonotify the driver that he/she has been authorized to pick up areplacement rental vehicle in accordance with the created replacementrental vehicle reservation. This notification can take the form of anemail (see FIG. 15(a)) to an email address for the driver. However, itshould be understood that the message can also take other forms such asa text message to the driver's mobile device. As shown in FIG. 15(a),the message can include instructions prompting the driver to initiate anactivation process for the created replacement rental vehiclereservation. The message can further include a user-selectable item(e.g., “Activate Priority Pass” button as shown in FIG. 15(a)) to startthe activation process. Further still, the message can include anactivation code for use by the driver as explained below. Thus, itshould be understood that the reservation record data structure 820 thatexists for the replacement rental vehicle reservation can also include afield that identifies the activation code associated with thatreplacement rental vehicle reservation. Moreover, it should beunderstood that the message could also include a selectable deep-linkURL that includes the authorization code. It should further beunderstood that step 1402 can be performed by the rental computer systemor by a computer system associated with the business partner of therental vehicle service provider who booked the replacement rentalvehicle reservation (e.g., an insurance company).

Upon selection by the driver of the “Activate Priority Pass” button asshown in FIG. 15(a), the mobile device 102 can navigate the driver tothe mobile application's GUI screen of either FIG. 15(b) or 16. FIG.15(b) is a home screen of the mobile application 250, and includes auser-selectable “Activate Priority Pass” button. FIG. 16 is a GUI screenof the mobile application 250 that is configured to solicit theactivation code from the driver. If the landing page from the message ofFIG. 15(a) is the home screen of FIG. 15(b), the landing page fromuser-selection of the “Activate Priority Pass” button of FIG. 15(b) canbe the GUI screen of FIG. 16. Alternatively, the driver can also beprovided with an ability to access the GUI screen of FIG. 16 startingfrom the home page (FIG. 15(b)) of the mobile application 250 ratherthan starting from the message shown in FIG. 15(a). From the GUI screenof FIG. 16, the driver can input the activation code for the replacementrental vehicle reservation, whereupon the mobile application 250 isconfigured to communicate this activation code to the rental computersystem 106 to be checked for correctness (or the mobile application canbe configured to check the correctness of the authorization code locallyif the correct authorization code is provided to the mobile applicationfor this purpose).

At step 1404, the rental computer system receives input from thedriver's mobile device 102 that is indicative of a request to activatethe replacement rental vehicle reservation. This input may take the formof the activation code entered via the GUI screen of FIG. 16. Then, atstep 1406, the rental computer system retrieves the record for thedriver's replacement rental vehicle reservation from database 308 basedon the received activation code. Next, at step 1408, the rental computersystem communicates data about the retrieved replacement rental vehiclereservation to the driver's mobile device for populating various GUIscreens of the mobile application 250. For example, as shown in the GUIscreen of FIG. 17, this data may include details for the replacementrental vehicle reservation (e.g., repair information about the driver'sordinary vehicle undergoing repairs such as the name and address of therepair facility for such repairs, driver information (e.g., name,address, and telephone number), information about the replacement rentalvehicle reservation, etc.). The GUI screen of FIG. 17 can also beconfigured to solicit a selection by the driver of a pickup mode for thereservation—for example, conventional pickup that involves humaninteraction or an automated rental vehicle pickup of a self-rent rentalvehicle. In this example, we will presume the driver selects theautomated pickup mode. Another exemplary GUI screen for this portion ofthe process is shown in FIG. 18. FIG. 18 shows how the mobileapplication can be configured to solicit a selection by the driver of arental vehicle for pickup from among a plurality of rental vehicles forpickup in accordance with the replacement rental vehicle reservation.The GUI screen can display rental vehicles by class and price.Furthermore, the rental computer system can be configured to restrictthe choices presented to the driver to only those available rentalvehicles whose class and/or price falls within a range authorized by thebusiness partner for the replacement rental vehicle reservation.Alternatively, the rental computer system can be configured to list allavailable rental vehicles for selection but highlight those rentalvehicles that fall within the authorization set by the business partner.In such an instance, should the driver select a rental vehicle outsidethe authorization, the driver can be notified and given an option to payfor the difference himself or herself.

At step 1410, the rental computer system receives selections from thedriver's mobile device that were made with respect to the choice optionsthat had been presented to the driver. These selections may comprise aparticular rental vehicle (or particular group of rental vehicles suchas a rental vehicle class) and a pickup mode (which as noted above willbe an automated pickup mode for the purposes of this example). Next, atstep 1412, the rental computer system communicates information about thedriver's chosen selections to the mobile device for populating averification GUI screen on the mobile device. FIG. 19 depicts anexemplary verification GUI screen in this regard.

If the driver verifies the information on the GUI screen of FIG. 19, themobile application can navigate the driver to the GUI screen of FIG. 20.The GUI screen of FIG. 20 is configured to solicit payment informationfrom the driver (e.g., for payment by credit card, debit card, PayPal,or the like). This payment information may be needed for the purposes of(1) paying for the replacement rental vehicle reservation or a portionthereof if the business partner has not picked up the full cost and/or(2) placing a hold on the driver's credit card should he or she keep therental vehicle beyond the authorized time period. The GUI screen of FIG.20 can be configured to solicit information such as a credit card typeand credit card number (or a confirmation regarding same if the customeralready has such information on file with the rental vehicle serviceprovider). Further still, if the driver's mobile device is equipped witha scanner for a credit card (either integrated into the mobile device oras an attachment), the driver can swipe his/her credit card through thescanner rather than manually enter the credit card information. Afterreceipt of the driver's payment information, the mobile device cancommunicate this payment information to the rental computer system.Then, at step 1414, the rental computer system can receive this paymentinformation.

Another task is for the driver to provide proof that he/she has a validdriver's license. FIG. 21 depicts an exemplary GUI screen for display onthe mobile device that is configured to begin the process of obtainingdriver's license information from the driver. The GUI screen of FIG. 21is configured to solicit an identification of the state for the driver'slicense. The mobile application then navigates the driver to the GUIscreen of FIG. 22. The GUI screen of FIG. 22 is configured to instructthe driver about how to scan his/her driver's license. A “Begin Scan”button or the like can be provided for user selection to enable thecamera feature of the mobile device to capture a photograph of thedriver's license. After capturing the photograph, the mobile applicationcauses the mobile device to communicate the image data for the driver'slicense photograph of the driver's license and the state identificationto the rental computer system. Next, at step 1416, the rental computersystem receives this information for processing at step 1418.

Step 1418 can involve the rental computer system processing the driver'slicense information as previously described in connection with FIG.7(b). Furthermore, step 1418 can involve the rental computer systemprocessing the payment information using conventional techniques. Itshould be understood that third party computer systems may also beemployed to perform this processing and analysis with the results beingreported to the rental computer system.

It should be understood that if the rental computer system alreadyrecognizes the driver as a validly licensed driver as described inconnection with step 802 of FIG. 8(a) and the validity flag field 730 ofcustomer record 720 of FIG. 7(b), then the mobile application and rentalcomputer system can interact in a manner that permits the driver tobypass the GUI screens of FIGS. 21-22.

In the event that the rental computer system determines that thedriver's license and payment information are valid, then at step 1420,the rental computer system can activate the replacement rental vehiclereservation and update the reservation record 820 for the replacementrental vehicle reservation to reflect the activation. For example, anactivation flag field in the reservation record 820 for the replacementrental vehicle reservation can be set to mark the reservation asactivated. The rental computer system can also communicate thisactivation to the driver's mobile device for populating a GUI screen ofthe mobile application (see FIG. 23). The driver will then be associatedwith an activated replacement rental vehicle reservation to make thedriver eligible to pick up a self-rent rental vehicle using automatedpickup techniques. Furthermore, this step can involve communicating datareflective of the activated replacement rental vehicle reservation tothe driver's mobile device for local storage thereon.

3b. Automated Rental Vehicle Pickup for the Activated Reservation

FIG. 24 depicts an exemplary process flow for a mobile device to supportaccessing a self-rent rental vehicle in accordance with an activatedreplacement rental vehicle reservation. When the driver approaches therental vehicle 108, he/she can open the mobile application 250 andselect the activate button (see FIG. 15(b)). To remind the driver to dothis, the rental computer system or business partner computer system cancommunicate a reminder message to the driver's mobile device (see forexample, the text message of FIG. 25).

At step 2402, the mobile application 250 checks whether the replacementrental vehicle reservation has already been activated. This step mayinvolve a communication with the rental computer system to gather thisinformation, although this need not be the case if the mobile devicelocally stores data indicative of the replacement rental vehicle'sactivation. If the subject replacement rental vehicle reservation hasnot been activated, then at step 2408, the mobile application can enterthe process flow beginning with FIG. 16 to begin an activationprocedure. If the subject replacement rental vehicle reservation hasbeen activated, then at step 2404, the mobile application causes themobile device to display a GUI screen that instructs the user how toaccess the subject self-rent rental vehicle. An exemplary GUI screen forthis purpose is shown at FIG. 26. At step 2406, the mobile applicationinstructs the mobile device to activate an output mechanism forcommunicating a unique identifier such as the customer identifier ormobile device identifier from the driver's customer record so that thisinformation can be sensed by the sensor 906 located on the rentalvehicle. As noted above, the output mechanism can employ datacommunication techniques such as NFC and BlueTooth. Also, if the datacommunication technique involves a persistent communication capabilityof the mobile device (e.g., an RFID tag or the like), then step 2406 maynot be needed as the RFID tag can be characterized as “always on”.

This interaction can be accomplished in any of a number of ways. Forexample, the mobile application can prompt the user at step 2404 to scana car identifier such as a bar code or a QR code located on the rentalvehicle to confirm that the subject rental vehicle is the rental vehiclecorresponding to the activated replacement rental vehicle reservation.If the mobile device locally stores the reservation record 820 for thereplacement rental vehicle reservation, this may involve comparing ascanned car identifier with the rental vehicle identifier field 804 ofthe reservation record 820. If the two match, then the mobileapplication can perform step 2406 (and unlocking is then contingent onthe process flow shown in FIG. 10). In another embodiment, the mobileapplication can be configured to perform step 2406 while the driverscans the car identifier on the rental vehicle, whereupon unlocking ofthe rental vehicle can be conditioned on both the unique identifier fromthe mobile device matching the authorization record for the rentalvehicle (as per the FIG. 10 process flow) and a signal from the mobiledevice that the car identifier matches the rental vehicle identifier forthe reservation record 820. In still another embodiment, the mobileapplication can be configured such that the driver need not scan the caridentifier, and where unlocking of the rental vehicle merely follows theprocess flow described in connection with FIG. 10. If the process flowof FIG. 10 operates to successfully confirm the driver as eligible topick up the rental vehicle, then the control hardware 600 can signal themobile device about this confirmation, whereupon the mobile device cansignal the driver about same (e.g., the mobile application can cause themobile device to beep or vibrate or change a display color). Thereupon,the mobile application can cause the mobile device to display the GUIscreen of FIG. 27 which can be configured to provide furtherinstructions regarding the rental vehicle. The driver would then be freeto drive the rental vehicle away.

Also, optionally, telematics technology deployed on the rental vehiclecan be configured to automatically detect information such as the rentalvehicle's mileage and fuel level at the time of rental vehicle pickup.This information can be communicated from the rental vehicle to therental computer system and/or mobile device for storage therein inassociation with the reservation record.

3c. Returning the Rental Vehicle to Complete the Reservation

FIG. 28 depicts an exemplary process flow for a mobile device to supportadministering a return of the rental vehicle for the replacement rentalvehicle reservation after pickup by the driver.

As discussed in the above-referenced and incorporated patents and patentapplications, the automated reservation management computer system 504can be configured to detect when repairs have been completed to thedriver's ordinary vehicle. When such an event happens, the rentalcomputer system or business partner computer system can send a messageto the driver's mobile device notifying him or her of same (step 2800).FIG. 29 displays an exemplary email message for this purpose. As shownin FIG. 29, this message can include a selectable option for the driverto begin the return process for the rental vehicle. The home screen ofthe mobile application 250 can also provide a selectable “return” optionas shown in FIG. 30. The message provided at step 2800 can include acompletion code for use by the driver to indicate he/she is initiatingthe return process. The rental computer system can be configured tomaintain a field in the reservation record for the replacement rentalvehicle reservation that stores a unique completion code for thereservation. Upon driver selection of the return button in the messageor the home screen (see FIGS. 29 and 30), the mobile application cannavigate the driver to the GUI screen of FIG. 31, which is configured tosolicit from the driver the completion code. Upon entry of thecompletion code, the mobile device can communicate the completion codeto the rental computer system to indicate the driver's intent to returnthe rental vehicle.

At step 2802, the rental computer system receives this completion codefrom the mobile device, and then retrieves the reservation record forthe replacement rental vehicle reservation based on the receivedcompletion code (step 2804). At step 2806, the rental computer systemcommunicates pre-return information about the replacement rental vehiclereservation to the mobile device for display thereon.

The GUI screen of FIG. 32 depicts an example of how the mobileapplication can display such pre-return information. The GUI screen ofFIG. 32 is also configured to solicit from the driver: (1) a vehiclereturn mode (e.g., an automated vehicle return or a conventional rentalvehicle return at a rental vehicle branch location), and (2) a date andtime for the vehicle return. Upon receipt of this information from thedriver, the mobile application can ask the driver to verify the providedpre-return information (see FIG. 33). Upon user verification, the mobileapplication can cause the mobile device to communicate the selectedvehicle return mode and selected vehicle return date/time to the rentalcomputer system.

At step 2808, the rental computer system receives this pre-returninformation from the mobile device, and the rental computer system thenstores this information in database 308, preferably appending thepre-return information to the reservation record 820 for the replacementrental vehicle reservation. The rental computer system can alsocommunicate a confirmation of its receipt of the pre-return informationto the mobile device for display thereon (see FIG. 34). Thisconfirmation GUI screen can be configured to instruct the driver furtherregarding the rental vehicle return process.

FIG. 35 depicts an exemplary process flow for a mobile device to supportthe final portion of the return process for the rental vehicle. Thedriver can open the mobile application on the return date and select thereturn button to initiate this process flow. At step 3500, the mobileapplication detects that the driver has selected the return button. Atstep 3502, the mobile application checks whether the driver has alreadyprovided pre-return information for the replacement rental vehiclereservation. If he/she has not, the mobile application can enter thescreen flow beginning with the example of FIG. 31. Otherwise, the mobileapplication can check whether the current date matches the scheduledreturn date from the pre-return information (step 3506). If not, themobile application can notify the driver about this discrepancy and askthe driver if he/she is returning the rental vehicle early (step 3508).If the driver responds that he/she does not want to return the rentalvehicle early, the process flow can terminate. However, if the driverresponds that he/she wishes to continue with the vehicle return, thenthe process flow can proceed to step 3510. Also, if step 3506 detectsthat the driver is returning the vehicle late, the mobile applicationcan proceed to step 3510.

At step 3510, the mobile application causes the mobile device to displaya GUI screen, where this GUI screen is configured to present the driverwith return status information (see FIG. 36 for an example of such a GUIscreen). Optionally, telematics technology deployed on the rentalvehicle can be configured to automatically detect information such asthe rental vehicle's mileage and fuel level at the time of return. Thisinformation can be communicated to the rental computer system and/ormobile device for association with the reservation record. The GUIscreen of FIG. 36 can thus be able to present to the driver a display ofhow many miles were driven and how the current fuel level of the rentalvehicle compares with the fuel level at the time of pickup.

The GUI screen also be configured to solicit input from the driver toindicate whether the rental vehicle has experienced any noticeabledamage during the rental. If the mobile application receives input fromthe driver indicative of no such damage at step 3512, then the processflow can proceed to step 3516. If the mobile application receives inputfrom the driver indicative of the existence of such damage at step 3512,then the process flow can proceed to step 3514. At step 3514, the mobileapplication can cause the mobile device to display one or more GUIscreens that are configured to solicit details regarding such damage.

At step 3516, the mobile application then causes the mobile device tocommunicate information to the rental computer system regardingcompletion of the replacement rental vehicle reservation. In turn, therental computer system can update its database so that the reservationrecord for the replacement rental vehicle reservation has its statuschanged to “closed” or the like. Furthermore, any damage items noted atstep 3514 and communicated at step 3516 can be stored in associationwith the reservation record. A practitioner may also choose to designthe mobile application so that a user can capture images of any vehicledamage to be uploaded to the rental system for storage in associationwith a record for the rental. Upon completion of the replacement rentalvehicle reservation, the rental computer system can also communicate anupdate to the control hardware 600 of the subject rental vehicle toupdate its authorization record to remove authorization for the driverwith respect to the now closed replacement rental vehicle reservation.In this fashion, the driver can be prevented from re-entering thevehicle after return. Another task for the rental computer system uponcompletion can be sending an electronic receipt for the rentaltransaction to the mobile device and/or an email address associated withthe driver. FIG. 37 depicts an exemplary GUI screen that can bedisplayed on the mobile device to inform the driver of this completion.

Thus, it can be seen that FIGS. 13-37 describe various aspects of anexemplary embodiment whereby mobile devices and self-rental rentalvehicle can be employed to streamline the replacement rental vehiclereservation process.

4. Exemplary Embodiment for Mobility-Enhanced Rental ProgramReservations

FIGS. 38(a) and (b) depict a process flow for an exemplary embodimentwhereby a mobile device is used to support rental vehicle reservationsof self-rent rental vehicles through a rental program offered by arental vehicle service provider. An exemplary rental program can be theWECAR rental service discussed above. Basic tasks for this, as shown inFIGS. 38(a)-(b), can include:

Stage 1: The customer downloading the mobile application 250 thatsupports the operations described herein to his/her mobile device;

Stage 2: The customer enrolling in the rental program via the mobileapplication to become a registered user (preferably including scanninghis/her driver's license to become approved as a validly licenseddriver);

Stage 3: The customer creating a rental vehicle reservation with respectto a self-rent rental vehicle via the mobile application;

Stage 4: The customer picking up a self-rent rental vehicle inaccordance with the reservation via the mobile application; and

Stage 5: The customer ending the reservation via the mobile application.

FIG. 39(a) depicts an exemplary process flow for Stages 1 and 2 above,with FIGS. 39(b)-(d) providing larger views of the features from FIG.39(a). FIG. 39(e) provides an exemplary process flow for execution bythe mobile application to perform Stage 2 above. FIG. 39(f) provides anexemplary process flow for execution by the rental computer system toperform Stage 2 above.

The mobile application 250 for the rental service can be downloaded by acustomer at Stage 1 in response to any of a number of access paths. Forexample, the customer may visit a website associated with the rentalservice and download the mobile application from there. As anotherexample, the customer may receive an email invitation or the like with aselectable link for downloading the mobile application. As yet anotherexample, the mobile application can be downloaded from an “app store” orthe like that is accessible via the mobile device. To complete initialregistration, the rental computer system can email or a text a messageto the customer that provides a unique code, QR code, or URL link, thatis selectable by the customer to complete his/her registration as shownin FIG. 39(b).

Also, to become enrolled with the rental program, the rental computersystem can obtain information about the customer (e.g., name, address,contact information, etc.) for populating a customer record 720. Suchinformation, can, in part, be obtained from the customer prior todownloading the mobile application. Or, all of such information can beobtained from the customer via the mobile application. For example, atstep 3900, the mobile application can cause one or more GUI screens tobe displayed on the mobile device to solicit customer information. Atstep 3902, the mobile application receives the enrollment customerinformation. At step 3904, the mobile application checks whether allnecessary customer enrollment information has been received. If no, itcontinues to request more information from the customer. If yes, themobile application proceeds to step 3906.

At step 3906, the mobile application displays one or more GUI screensthat guide the customer through a driver's license scanning operation(see FIG. 39(c)). Upon receipt of a photograph of the customer'sdriver's license (step 3908), the mobile application communicates theenrollment information and the driver's license photograph to the rentalcomputer system (step 3910). At step 3912, the mobile applicationreceives a responsive communication from the rental computer system. Ifthe rental computer system provides a responsive communication that thecustomer's enrollment information is complete and driver's license isdeemed valid, then the customer is notified of successful enrollment(see FIG. 39(d)) and the process flow ends. If the rental computersystem provides a responsive communication that the customer'senrollment information is incomplete and/or driver's license is deemedinvalid, then the customer is notified of an enrollment denial, and thecustomer will need to begin again in order to enroll (or at least at thestage of the process where faulty information was provided).

FIG. 39(f) depicts the process flow from the perspective of the rentalcomputer system. At step 3920, the rental computer system receives thecustomer's enrollment information and driver's license image. At step3922, the rental computer system determines whether a complete set ofcustomer enrollment data has been provided and also analyzes thedriver's license image to assess the validity of the driver's license.This step can be performed as described previously in connection withstep 722 of FIG. 7(b). If the enrollment data is complete and thedriver's license is deemed valid, then at step 3926, the rental computersystem can create the customer record 720, such record including aunique customer identifier field and driver's license validity flagfield, etc. as previously discussed. The rental computer system can alsocommunicate a notification to the customer's mobile device thatenrollment was successful. If the enrollment data is incomplete and/orthe driver's license is deemed invalid, then at step 3924, the rentalcomputer system can deny the customer's enrollment request andcommunicate a message to the customer's mobile device re same.

FIG. 40(a) depicts an exemplary process flow for Stage 3 above, withFIGS. 40(b)-(d) providing larger views of the features from FIG. 40(a).During stage 3, the mobile application can cause the customer's mobiledevice to display various GUI screens that are configured to solicitreservation information from the customer. Exemplary items ofreservation information can include: pickup location, return location,vehicle information (if a range of vehicle options are available for agiven pickup location), pickup date/time, and return date/time. Themobile application can be configured to communicate with the rentalcomputer system to determine availabilities and book a rental vehiclereservation for the customer if possible. Upon completion of thisprocess, the rental computer system can create a reservation record 820for the customer in association with the customer's customer record 720.A confirmation of the reservation can be displayed on the customer'smobile device via the mobile application (see FIG. 40(d)).

FIG. 41(a) depicts an exemplary process flow for Stages 4 and 5 above,with FIGS. 41(b)-(c) providing larger views of the features from FIG.41(a). FIG. 41(b) shows Stage 4 in larger form, while FIG. 41(c) showsStage 5 in larger form.

The process flow of FIG. 41(b) begins when the customer arrives at thereserved rental vehicle. While near the rental vehicle, the customeropens the mobile application, and selects a “Start Reservation” buttonor the like. The mobile application then causes the mobile device todisplay a GUI screen that prompts the customer to (1) capture aphotograph of the customer's driver's license, and (2) scan a scanablecar identifier on the rental vehicle (e.g., a bar code or QR code on thevehicle). This information can then be communicated to the rentalcomputer system for analysis, similar to what is shown in FIGS. 11 and12. If the rental computer system determines that the customer isauthorized to pick up the rental vehicle in accordance with thereservation, then the rental computer system communicates with thecontrol hardware 600 of the rental vehicle to cause its doors to unlockand provide the customer with access to the rental vehicle.

It should be understood that a practitioner may choose to implementStage 4 in different ways. For example, a practitioner may choose todesign the rental pickup process so that the customer need not re-submita driver's license photograph at the time of pick up if the customerrecord 720 for the customer in the database 308 already shows thecustomer as a validly licensed driver. In such a case, the customerwould need to only scan the car identifier and communicate the scannercar identifier from his/her mobile device to identify himself/herself tothe rental computer system. It should be understood that thecommunication from the mobile device to the rental computer system caninclude information for uniquely identifying the customer or customer'smobile device.

As another example, the verification process can be performed locally bythe control hardware of the rental vehicle rather than by the rentalcomputer system. Upon creation of the reservation, the rental computersystem can be configured to communicate an authorization record to thecontrol hardware 600 of the reserved rental vehicle that is acombination of fields from the reservation 820 and the customer record720 for the customer associated with the reservation. This authorizationrecord can be stored locally by the rental vehicle for use whenverifying the customer during pickup (see FIG. 10). If the practitionerwishes to verify the customer's driver's license at time of pickup, theprocess flow can still require the customer to scan his/her driver'slicense, such analysis to be performed by the rental computer system (orby the control hardware or mobile application if appropriatelyconfigured).

The process flow of FIG. 41(c) begins when the customer selects an “EndReservation” option from the mobile application. The mobile applicationcan be configured to provide the customer with this option if it detectsthat the customer is currently using a rental vehicle for thereservation. The customer can select this button when he/she parks therental vehicle to return it. The return location can be at a designatedreturn location or a user-selected location within a geographical areaof acceptable return locations, if the rental program supports suchreturns. Upon selection of the “End Reservation” option, the mobileapplication can prompt the customer for a confirmation that he/she willbe ending the reservation. If the customer confirms the return, themobile application can communicate a return instruction to the rentalcomputer system to end the reservation, whereupon the rental computersystem can instruct the rental vehicle to no longer provide the customerwith access to the rental vehicle. The rental computer system can alsoupdate its reservation record in the database to reflect the closing ofthe reservation.

5. Exemplary Rental Vehicle Selection Options

Another feature that can be supported by mobile devices to facilitatethe rental process can be a feature whereby customers are able to selectparticular rental vehicles from among a plurality of rental vehicles fortheir reservation via their mobile devices. In an exemplary embodiment,this selection process can be performed within a defined time periodimmediately before the customer arrives at a rental location to pick upa reserved rental vehicle.

FIG. 42 depicts an exemplary process flow for execution by the rentalcomputer system to present a mobile device with a plurality of specificrental vehicles for selection with respect to picking up a rentalvehicle in accordance with a reservation. At step 4200, the rentalcomputer system receives input from the customer's mobile device thatthe customer will soon be picking up a rental vehicle for his/herreservation. This input can be received in response to any of a numberof techniques. For example, the process flow can require the customer toopen the mobile application to send a message to the rental computersystem regarding such notification. FIG. 43 illustrates an exemplary GUIscreen through a mobile application for this purpose (see the “ChooseFrom Virtual Aisle” button; see also FIG. 44 which shows an exemplarylanding GUI screen after user-selection of the “Choose from VirtualAisle” button). Or, if GPS-tracking is enabled on the mobile device, themobile application can be configured to automatically prompt thecustomer as to whether he/she will soon be picking up his/her reservedrental vehicle in response to detecting that the customer's mobiledevice is within X miles of the reserved pickup location (e.g., 25miles).

Then, at step 4202, the rental computer system communicates the rentalvehicle pickup options to the mobile device for populating a GUI screenpresented through the mobile application. For example, if the customerhas reserved a “full-size” rental vehicle and there are 8 available“full-size” rental vehicles at the pickup location, the rental computersystem can communicate data regarding these 8 available “full-size”rental vehicles to the customer's mobile device. The mobile applicationcan then cause the mobile device to display one or more GUI screens (seeFIG. 45) that are configured to permit the customer to scroll throughand select a rental vehicle from among these options. FIG. 46 shows anexemplary GUI screen for a user to confirm the selection of a particularrental vehicle from among the presented choices.

Upon customer selection of a presented option, the mobile applicationcan communicate this selection to the rental computer system. Uponreceipt of the selection (step 4204), the rental computer system canre-check the selected rental vehicle's availability (step 4206). Thisstep may be necessary to accommodate for a situation where multiplecustomers are choosing from among pools of vehicles that include theselected vehicle at the same time. That is, while the customer waschoosing from among the options, another customer may have rendered anoption unavailable. If step 4206 results in a determination that theselected rental vehicle is no longer available, the rental computersystem can proceed to step 4208 to send a notification about theunavailability to the customer's mobile device and return to step 4202.If step 4206 results in a determination that the selected rental vehicleis still available, the rental computer system can proceed to step 4210.

At step 4210, the rental computer system places a time-limited hold onthe selected rental vehicle in favor of the customer. This actionprevents another customer from selecting that rental vehicle for pickupduring a specified time period (e.g., 30 minutes). The rental computersystem can then communicate a confirmation of this hold to thecustomer's mobile device for display to the customer (see FIGS. 47(a)and (b) for examples of GUI screens for this purpose). Upon confirmationof the selection by the customer, the rental computer system can start acountdown with respect to the pickup time clock. If the system isconfigured such that the rental computer system communicates anauthorization record to reserved rental vehicles, the rental computersystem can provide the selected rental vehicle with an authorizationrecord that includes a combination of fields from the reservation record820 and customer record 720 for the customer. Furthermore, FIG. 48 showsan example of a GUI screen that can serve as a machine-readableidentifier for establishing that the customer is entitled to pick up theselected rental vehicle during the hold period. For example, theidentifier can be a barcode or the like. Thus, for rental locations orrental vehicles that support automated self-rentals, the customer canplace the identifier shown by the GUI screen of FIG. 48 in proximity toa reader to gain access to the selected rental vehicle (presuming thecustomer does so within the hold period). Upon accessing the selectedrental vehicle within the hold period, the rental vehicle communicates asignal to the rental computer system to identify the rental vehicle aspicked up. Similarly, in an embodiment where automated self-rental isnot supported, this operation can be performed by an employee of therental car company who makes such a notation in a data entry terminal.

Next, at step 4212, the rental computer system checks whether it hasreceived a pickup notification for the selected rental vehicle withinthe pickup time window. As noted above, this notification can take theform of a message from the selected rental vehicle that the customer hasaccessed or requested access to the selected rental vehicle (e.g., byplacing his/her mobile device near the vehicle sensor 906). If thepickup time window expires before receiving such a notification, therental computer system at step 4216 can communicate a message to thecustomer's mobile device informing the customer about the expiration,remove the hold on the selected rental vehicle in the database, andreturn the customer to a vehicle selection process (see FIGS. 49(a) and(b) for examples of GUI screens that can be configured to communicatesuch expiration to the customer). However, once again, if thenotification is received within the pickup time window, then at step4214, the rental computer system can update database 308 including thereservation record 820 for that reservation to reflect the pickup.

Thus, the operation of the FIG. 42 process flow (in coordination withthe exemplary GUI screens of FIGS. 43-49) can permit a customer toselect a particular rental vehicle from among multiple rental vehicleoptions via the mobile application prior to arriving at the pickuplocation. As discussed, it is preferred that the time-limited hold bedefined such that the customer has a relatively short window in which toa pick up the particularly selected rental vehicle. In this fashion, itis expected that a rental car company will be able to more reliablypresent a wide range of options for rental vehicle selection. However,it should be understood that alternative implementations are possible.For example, some practitioners may choose to vary the length of thehold period for customers based on a tier level or other status levelassigned to customers. Thus, customers who are members of a frequentrenter program can be provided with the ability to hold a particularrental vehicle for a longer time than non-members (e.g., 2 hour holdsfor members of a frequent renter club and 30 minute holds fornon-members). Further still, some practitioners may choose to make someclub members of a rental car company not subject to any time-limitedholds while non-members would be. As another example, a rental carcompany might choose to vary the hold requirements by rental vehicletype (e.g., where reservations for higher end vehicle classes will havelonger hold periods than reservations for lower end vehicle classes). Asstill another example, a rental car company might choose to vary thehold requirements by the expected duration of the reservationtransaction (e.g., a reservation where the renter is expected to keepthe rental vehicle for 2 weeks would have a longer hold period than areservation where the renter is expected to keep the rental vehicle for2 days).

Also, other techniques can be used to permit a customer to select anyrental vehicle for pickup from a class of reserved rental vehicles inaccordance with a rental vehicle reservation. In one example, thecustomer can be free to place his/her mobile device near the sensor 906of any rental vehicle he/she chooses. If the chosen vehicle is withinthe class of rental vehicle defined for the reservation, then the rentalcomputer system can permit customer access for pickup.

As another example in instances where the rental computer systemcommunicates authorization records to the rental vehicles, a processflow such as the one in FIG. 50 can be employed. At step 5000, therental computer system updates the authorization records for a pluralityof rental vehicles that are available to the customer in accordance withthe rental vehicle reservation (e.g., broadcasting the authorizationrecord to all available “full-size” rental vehicles if the reservationis for the “full-size” rental class) to thereby make all such rentalvehicles eligible for customer selection. The customer will thus beauthorized to access any of those rental vehicles. When the customerplaces his/her mobile device near the sensor of one of these vehicles,the so-selected rental vehicle can communicate this selection to therental computer system. Upon receipt of such notification at step 5002,the rental computer system can proceed to step 5004 whereupon it updatesthe authorization records for the non-selected rental vehicles that hadbeen eligible for selection to remove the customer from theirauthorization records.

FIGS. 51(a) and (b) depict process flows for another embodiment wherecontrol mechanisms are put in place to prevent a customer from quicklypicking up multiple eligible rental vehicles by placing his/her mobiledevice near the sensors of multiple eligible rental vehicles in quicksuccession. The process flow of FIG. 51(a) for execution by the controlhardware of a rental vehicle is similar to that of FIG. 10, but addssteps 5010-5012 where it checks the rental computer system beforeproviding the customer with access. Thus, if the locally storedauthorization record for the rental vehicle shows that the customer isauthorized to pick up the rental vehicle, then at step 5010, the controlhardware communicates the access request for the customer to the rentalcomputer system, and awaits permission from the rental computer systemat step 5012 before providing the customer with access. FIG. 51(b)illustrates the complementary process flow for execution by the rentalcomputer system. This process flow is similar to that of FIG. 50, butadds a step (step 5020) to check the database 308 to make sure thecustomer does not reflect the customer has already accessed anotherrental vehicle for pickup in connection with the reservation. If thedatabase shows that the customer has already picked up a rental vehiclefor the reservation, an access denial is communicated to the rentalvehicle (step 5026). If the database check is clear, then at step 5022,the rental computer system updates the database to reflect the pickupbefore communicating access permission to the selected rental vehicle(step 5024).

Also, it should be understood that one of more of the GUI screenspresented to a customer during the vehicle selection process can beconfigured to solicit from the customer input as to whether the customerwould like to upgrade their vehicle selection. For example, if thecustomer had previously reserved an economy class rental vehicle, but atthe time of pickup, the customer is desirous of renting a larger vehicle(such as a full-size class rental vehicle), one or more of the GUIscreens presented to the customer can be configured to ask the customerwhether he or she would like to change the vehicle class for thetransaction. Depending on availability, in response to customer inputindicative of a desire to upgrade, the system can identify availablerental vehicles at the rental location at the higher class and providethe customer with the ability to select a particular one of thosevehicles as described above. Further still, in response to a customerrequest to upgrade, updated pricing information for the upgrade can bepresented to the customer through the GUI screens, and the customer canbe prompted to provide input as to whether he or she agrees to any newterms and conditions regarding such upgraded rental (e.g., a new rentalrate, etc.).

Furthermore, while the exemplary embodiment of FIGS. 43-49(b) is shownas operating in connection with a mobile application, it should beunderstood that such GUI screens can also be accessible by customersfrom a website.

6. Smart Key Emulation

FIG. 52 depicts an exemplary embodiment for a system that permits acustomer to use a machine-sensible item such as a mobile device as asmart key for starting a rental vehicle. Smart keys are now well-knowndevices for gaining access to and starting motor vehicles. With aconventional smart key, a fob carried by a driver is sensed by areceiver in the vehicle to permit the driver to start the vehiclewithout placing an actual key in an ignition slot. Instead, to startmost smart key-enabled vehicles, the driver needs to simply press a“start” button on the driver's console while also pressing the brakewith his/her foot (and while the smart key is in proximity to thevehicle). An administrative hassle for rental car companies with respectto rental operations lies in the distribution of keys, whether actualignition keys or smart key fobs, to renters for the rental vehicles.FIG. 52 describes an embodiment whereby a smart key emulator 5204 isinstalled inside the vehicle, where this smart key emulator is remotelyactivated, thereby alleviating the need to deliver an ignition key orsmart key fob to a renter.

Equipment 5200 such as control hardware 600 can be installed in therental vehicle. This equipment can include a sensor 5210, a wirelesscommunication interface 5208, authorization logic 5206, and a smart keyemulator 5204. The sensor 5210, wireless communication interface 5208,and authorization logic 5206 can operate as described in connection withFIG. 9 and other embodiments previously described herein. A remoteauthorization center 5202 such as rental computer system can communicateauthorization instructions to the rental vehicle via the wirelessinterface 5208. These authorization instructions can be stored in amemory by the equipment 5200 to serve as an authorization reference foraccess by the authorization logic executed by a processor within thevehicle. Then, when a customer places his/her machine-sensible item 5250near the sensor 5210 as previously described, the sensor 5210 cancommunicate sensed data indicative of the customer to the authorizationlogic 5206, and the authorization logic 5206 can compare the sensedinformation with the authorization reference. If there is a match, theauthorization logic can communicate an enable signal to the smart keyemulator 5204.

The smart key emulator 5204 can be configured to emulate a conventionalsmart key upon enablement. Thus, the enabled smart key emulator cancommunicate with the vehicle's (1) door lock/unlock system 5216 to lockand unlock the vehicle doors, (2) immobilizer 5214 to de-immobilize thevehicle, and (3) ignition system 5212 to permit the de-immobilizedvehicle to be started. Thus, by only enabling the smart key emulator5204 to output the appropriate codes for the vehicle in response to thecustomer being recognized as the customer who has reserved the rentalvehicle as reflected in the authorization records for the rentalvehicle, the customer will be able to use his/her proximate item 5250 asif it were a smart key to gain access to the vehicle and enablestart/stop of the vehicle's engine using methods previously describedherein. Furthermore, it should be understood that the smart key emulator5204 or other components of the equipment 5200 can also be configured tocommunicate with the vehicle's data bus via a physical connection to theOBDII or CAN bus port for purposes of data collection (and subsequentcommunication of the collected data back to the rental system 5202).Examples of data to be collected in this fashion can include vehiclelocation, vehicle identification number (VIN), fuel levels,mileage/odometer readings, etc.

In a preferred embodiment, the machine-sensible item 5250 is acustomer's mobile device 102 (such as a smart phone). However, it shouldbe noted that the machine-sensible 5250 could take other forms, such asan RFID tag or the like.

It should also be understood that a practitioner can choose to make theenable signal a simple “yes/no” binary signal, or alternatively a morecomplicated signal to reduce the opportunity for theft in the event acriminal attempts to steal the vehicle by breaking in and “hotwiring” a“yes” signal onto the communication link between the authorization logicand the smart key emulator 5204. For example, rather than a “yes/no”binary signal, the enable signal can take the form of a multi-bit code.Still further, the enable signal can be an encrypted signal communicatedbetween the authorization logic 5206 and smart key emulator 5204 thatchanges over time as is used on many remote access computer systems.Thus, upon concluding that the customer is authorized to access andstart the rental vehicle, the authorization logic 5206 can be configuredto communicate an encrypted “yes/enable” signal to the smart keyemulator 5204. The smart key emulator 5204 can then be configured todecrypt the received encrypted signal and condition the enablement onthe decryption revealing that the authorization logic provided a“yes/enable” instruction. As noted, the encryption can be configured tochange over time to minimize the risk of hacking.

Also, a protective enclosure can be provided around the authorizationlogic and smart key emulator to reduce the opportunity for a criminal toaccess the communication link for hotwiring purposes. For example, theycan be deployed together in an integrated circuit.

In another exemplary embodiment where the item 5250 is a mobile device102, the smart key emulator 5204 can be deployed as part of a mobileapplication resident on the mobile device rather than within equipmenton the car.

It should also be understood that equipment 5200 can be an aftermarketaddition to a rental vehicle or it can be part of the original equipmentfrom the manufacturer of the rental vehicle. FIG. 53 depicts anexemplary embodiment where the equipment 5200 is aftermarket equipment.Through antennae 5302 and 5304 (which may include the antenna 5302 of acellular carrier), the rental vehicle is able to communicate with theremote rental system 5202 as well as a remote aftermarket gatewayservice 5300 (via network 104). The aftermarket gateway service 5300 cancommunicate instructions to the rental vehicle and receive data such astelematics data (e.g., mileage, fuel levels, etc.) from the rentalvehicle. Thus, the rental system 5202 can either be configured tocommunicate instructions to the rental vehicle directly or indirectlyvia the aftermarket gateway service 5300. The aftermarket authorizationlogic 5206 can perform the authorization check on data sensed by sensor5210 (which can be an NFC sensor for sensing an NFC signal generated byitem 5250) using authorization reference data from the rental system5202. If the sensed data is deemed authorized, then the smart keyemulator 5204 is configured to generate a signal for enabling vehicleignition. The OEM system 5310 of the rental vehicle can include anOBDII/CAN port 5312 through which the authorization logic accesses therental vehicle to instruct components such as controller 5314 (e.g., anengine CPU), door lock/unlock system 5216, immobilizer 5214, andsecurity system 5316 to enable/disable operation as appropriate.

FIG. 54 depicts an exemplary embodiment where the equipment 5200 isincluded within the OEM system 5310 of the rental vehicle. In such anarrangement, a OEM controller 5402 can include the authorization logic5206 and smart key emulator 5204. Such a controller 5402 can be amodified OEM telematics controller or the like (such as for OnStar orBlueLink systems). Further still, such OEM system 5310 can be configuredto communicate with a remote embedded OEM backend service 5400 for theOEM telematics technology, to play effectively the same role in theprocess as can the aftermarket gateway service 5300 for the exemplaryembodiment of FIG. 53.

FIG. 55 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a system employing a smartkey emulator in operation. In this example, the equipment 5500 residentin the vehicle includes a virtual key that functions as the smart keyemulator along with a door lock interface 5502, door unlock interface5504, trunk release interface 5506, panic button interface 5508, and anyother interfaces 5510 that are desired. An antenna can communicate asignal from the virtual key 5204 to a key presence sensor 5520 in thevehicle to emulate the presence of a smart key near the vehicle. If asmart key is detected by the sensor 5520, the sensor 5520 can notify thevehicle immobilizer 5526 as well as the locking/trunk system 5522, bodycontrol unit (BCU) 5524, and immobilizer 5526 that the vehicle can beplaced in condition for operation. This signal from the virtual key canbe communicated as a low power, low frequency signal. An antenna canalso communicate signals from the various interfaces to the vehicle'slock/unlock, trunk, and other systems 5522 to effectuate a desiredaction. Thus, a mobile application or the like can be configured to alsopresent buttons for selection by a user to lock/unlock doors, open thetrunk, actuate the panic system, etc. The equipment 5500 can alsoinclude a sensor 5210 as previously described. However, this need not bethe case if alternate techniques are used to verify the physicalpresence of the customer near the vehicle. For example, if the customeris using a position tracking-enabled mobile device (e.g., a mobiledevice with GPS capabilities), the remote rental system can compare thedetected physical location of the customer with the detected physicallocation of the rental vehicle to assess their proximity.

When a customer is physically present near the vehicle, a mobileapplication executing on the customer's mobile device can communicatewith the remote rental system, where this communication is effectively arequest for that customer to use the subject rental vehicle at theparticular time. If the rental system determines that the customer isauthorized to rent the rental vehicle, the rental system can communicatea cellular command to equipment to wake up (similarly, in an embodimentemploying GPS comparisons to assess physical proximity, the rentalsystem can wake the equipment up to check vehicle location). A presencepulse signal can be initiated, and the processor 5512 of the equipment5500 can obtain the GPS position of the vehicle from GPS system 5514.The processor 5512 can also actuate a data collection component 5516 toaccess the vehicle through a port 5530 such as an OBDII port to collectdata from the engine control unit (ECU) 5528 such as fuel levels, VIN,odometer readings, etc. This collected data along with the GPS positioncan then be communicated back to the rental system via wireless radio5518.

While the present invention has been described above in relation toexemplary embodiments, various modifications may be made thereto thatstill fall within the invention's scope, as would be recognized by thoseof ordinary skill in the art. Such modifications to the invention willbe recognizable upon review of the teachings herein. As such, the fullscope of the present invention is to be defined solely by the appendedclaims and their legal equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for performing an automated returnadministration of a rental vehicle, the method comprising: receivinginput from a mobile device of a driver for the rental vehicle that isindicative of a request to schedule a return for the rental vehicle; inresponse to the received input, communicating information from areservation record for the rental vehicle to the driver's mobile deviceto populate a pre-return graphical user interface (GUI) for display onthe driver's mobile device, the GUI being configured to solicit returninformation from the driver; receiving the solicited return informationfrom the driver's mobile device through the GUI; and storing thereceived return information in memory in association with thereservation record; and wherein the method steps are performed by aprocessor.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the rental vehicle is areplacement rental vehicle, the replacement rental vehicle serving as areplacement for a personal vehicle of the driver while the personalvehicle is undergoing repairs, the method further comprising theprocessor performing the following steps prior to the input receivingstep: detecting when repairs have been completed on the driver'spersonal vehicle; and sending a message to the driver's mobile devicenotifying the driver that repairs have been completed on the driver'spersonal vehicle.
 3. The method of claim 1 wherein the rental vehicle isa replacement rental vehicle, the replacement rental vehicle serving asa replacement for a personal vehicle of the driver while the personalvehicle is undergoing repairs, the method further comprising: theprocessor, prior to performing the input receiving step, sending amessage to the driver's mobile device notifying the driver aboutcompletion of repairs for the driver's personal vehicle.
 4. The methodof claim 3 wherein the message includes a completion code, wherein theinput receiving step comprises receiving a competition code from thedriver's mobile device, and wherein the method further comprises: theprocessor comparing the received completion code with the completioncode included in the message; and the processor conditioning performanceof the communicating step on a determination that the receivedcompletion code matches the completion code included in the message. 5.The method of claim 1 wherein the solicited return information comprisesat least one member of the group consisting of a vehicle return mode,and temporal data for the vehicle return.
 6. The method of claim 5wherein the temporal data for the vehicle return comprises a date andtime for the vehicle return.
 7. The method of claim 5 wherein thesolicited return information comprises (1) a selection of a vehiclereturn mode from a plurality of vehicle return mode options, the vehiclereturn mode options including an automated vehicle return mode option,and (2) temporal data for the vehicle return, and wherein the solicitedreturn information receiving step comprises the processor receiving aselection of the automated vehicle return mode option and temporal datafor the vehicle return from the driver's mobile device through the GUI.8. The method of claim 7 further comprising: the processor receivinginput from the driver's mobile device indicative of a request tocomplete the return of the rental vehicle; in response to the receivedreturn completion request, the processor updating the reservation recordto reflect a closed status.
 9. The method of claim 7 wherein the rentalvehicle is a self-rent rental vehicle, the method further comprising:the processor receiving input from the driver's mobile device indicativeof a request to complete the return of the rental vehicle; andresponsive to the received request to complete the return, the processorcommunicating with control hardware deployed on the self-rent rentalvehicle to remove an authorization for the driver.
 10. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the processor comprises a processor resident in a rentalcomputer system.
 11. The method of claim 1 further comprising: theprocessor receiving input from the driver's mobile device indicative ofa request to complete the return of the rental vehicle; and responsiveto the received request to complete the return, the processor generatinga command that causes a wireless signal to be transmitted the rentalvehicle, the wireless signal for reception by the rental vehicle tocontrol at least one of (1) a door locking system of the rental vehicle,(2) an immobilizer of the rental vehicle, and (3) an ignition system ofthe rental vehicle so as to disable use of the rental vehicle by thedriver.
 12. An apparatus for performing an automated returnadministration of a rental vehicle, the apparatus comprising: aprocessor; and a memory configured to store a reservation record for therental vehicle; wherein the processor is configured to (1) receive inputfrom a mobile device of a driver for the rental vehicle that isindicative of a request to schedule a return for the rental vehicle, (2)in response to the received input, communicate information from thereservation record for the rental vehicle to the driver's mobile deviceto populate a pre-return graphical user interface (GUI) for display onthe driver's mobile device, the GUI being configured to solicit returninformation from the driver, (3) receive the solicited returninformation from the driver's mobile device through the GUI, and (4)store the received return information in the memory in association withthe reservation record.
 13. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the rentalvehicle is a replacement rental vehicle, the replacement rental vehicleserving as a replacement for a personal vehicle of the driver while thepersonal vehicle is undergoing repairs; and wherein the processor isfurther configured to, prior to receipt of the input to schedule thereturn, (1) detecting when repairs have been completed on the driver'spersonal vehicle, and (2) send a message to the driver's mobile device,the message configured to notify the driver that repairs have beencompleted on the driver's personal vehicle.
 14. The apparatus of claim12 wherein the rental vehicle is a replacement rental vehicle, thereplacement rental vehicle serving as a replacement for a personalvehicle of the driver while the personal vehicle is undergoing repairs;and wherein the processor is further configured to, prior to receipt ofthe input to schedule the return, send a message to the driver's mobiledevice, the message configured to notify the driver about completion ofrepairs for the driver's personal vehicle.
 15. The apparatus of claim 14wherein the message includes a completion code; and wherein theprocessor is further configured to (1) receive a competition code fromthe driver's mobile device, (2) compare the received completion codewith the completion code included in the message, and (3) conditionperformance of the communication operation on a determination that thereceived completion code matches the completion code included in themessage.
 16. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the solicited returninformation comprises at least one member of the group consisting of avehicle return mode, and temporal data for the vehicle return.
 17. Theapparatus of claim 16 wherein the processor is further configured toprovide a plurality of vehicle return mode options for the rentalvehicle return, the vehicle return mode options including an automatedvehicle return mode option.
 18. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein theprocessor is further configured to (1) receive input from the driver'smobile device indicative of a request to complete the return of therental vehicle, and (2) in response to the received return completionrequest, update the reservation record to reflect a closed status. 19.The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the rental vehicle is a self-rentrental vehicle; and wherein the processor is further configured to (1)receive input from the driver's mobile device indicative of a request tocomplete the return of the rental vehicle, and (2) responsive to thereceived request to complete the return, communicate with controlhardware deployed on the self-rent rental vehicle to remove anauthorization for the driver.
 20. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein theprocessor is further configured to: receive input from the driver'smobile device indicative of a request to complete the return of therental vehicle; and responsive to the received request to complete thereturn, generate a command that causes a wireless signal to betransmitted the rental vehicle, the wireless signal for reception by therental vehicle to control at least one of (1) a door locking system ofthe rental vehicle, (2) an immobilizer of the rental vehicle, and (3) anignition system of the rental vehicle so as to disable use of the rentalvehicle by the driver.